Book Reviews, Rants, & Raves!

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Water Witch by Amelia Bishop

I am excited to have one of my very good writer friends on the blog today, Amelia Bishop, and her new book, Water Witch.

Author Bio: I am a reader and writer of romantic erotic fiction of all varieties. Sometimes, the little stories in my head just need to be shared (and sometimes they are just for me). I enjoy red wine, black rum, shell-hunting walks along the seashore, and solo late-night drunken dance parties.

Author Contact:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ameliabishopauthor

Twitter: @anotheramelia

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/ameliabishop507/

Cover Artist: Cover photo by Dan Skinner

Publisher: Self-published

Blurb(s):

Vincenzo is a witch with a short fuse, a sexy smile, and dirty mouth.

Life demands little from Vincenzo. Treasured by his mother and grandmother, protected by his coven, and blessed with precognitive skills, he grew up happy and carefree in his snug home by the bay.

Then a sexy Fae walks into his house to steal his beloved heirlooms, and into his dreams to steal his heart. Meanwhile, haunting visions of an unknown disaster on the horizon shake his secure world and force him to take responsibility for the first time in his life.

Now he must master his witchcraft, temper his impulsiveness, and listen to his heart.

Excerpt:

His long legs draped over the edge of the low bluff and he let my family treasures fall onto the grass beside him. He picked up the incense stone and turned it over in his hand. I knew the old rock well, but his hand enthralled me. His milk-pale skin, smooth and dry now, no longer shone with wetness.

I was able to see his face again then, and drank in the details. No jewelry, human-looking earlobes, and the palest dusting of hair on his face, like a woman might have. No trace of a beard, no imperfections on his skin at all. He smiled at the stone, giving me the impression of affection. Did he covet these things? Want them for himself? Had he taken them just to admire?

He lifted his arm and threw the stone into the deep water below, and I almost jumped up. The water sloshed in the ice bucket, but the vision remained. “NO!” I shouted into the water as the rock hit the waves and sunk, lost forever.

“No.” I almost sobbed it that time. The loss of that stone hit me like a fist to my chest as I sat there, powerless.

Tour Dates/Stops:

9/8: MM Good Book Reviews

9/9: Book Reviews, Rants, and Raves

9/10: Cate Ashwood

9/11: Elisa - My Reviews and Ramblings

9/12: Love Bytes

9/15: Velvet Panic, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words

9/16: EE Montgomery

9/17: Amanda C. Stone

9/18: Prism Book Alliance

9/19: The Hat Party

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Rafflecopter Prize: 3 e-copies of Water Witch

Sales Links: http://www.amazon.com/Water-Witch-Amelia-Bishop-ebook/dp/B00MR9Z09S

Saturday, September 6, 2014

The Foreman By J.T. Hall

So excited to have a writer friend of mine, J.T. Hall, on the blog today, talking about her latest release, "The Foreman."

Where are the bears?

As I’ve mentioned once or twice on my blog, I’m a proud member of the Grand Canyon Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a volunteer ministry that serves the LGBT community. The majority of the Sisters are gay men, which isn’t surprising given that the original Sisters were a bunch of theatrical gay men in San Francisco in 1979 who just decided for the hell of it to wear nun outfits and take to the streets in the name of gay rights.

I mention this because of the thirty or so members of our local house, there are quite a few “bears”—bearded men who tend to be a bit rounder and hairy, not the stereotypical young twink or shaved and toned bodybuilder. And when we head out to the bars to distribute condoms or teach about safe sex and raise money for AIDS research, my fellow “Sisters” like to point out to me choice specimens of their type—other bears. It’s amusing to me because in my glittery Sister makeup and glamorous outfits, people have a hard time determining if I’m male or female. Not so the bears with their beards.

That brings me to gay fiction, particularly gay erotica. Try searching for “gay bear erotica” on Amazon. I got 215 results. Well that’s not too bad, right? Only among those 215, you find about half of them are actually wolf and/or bear shifter m/m romance. Not really the same thing. (Also a Panda bear shifter story, but I won’t go into that). So in comparison to other gay erotic themes and especially mmromance, there aren’t really a lot of bear stories. Even more interesting, I noticed that a lot of the offerings only came out this year.

Why the lack of love? Are we just too fixated on the men who look like models? Is the market just too small for this sub-genre?

Dreamspinner decided to do a bear gay romance anthology this year, their first, I believe. I peeked in on their Goodreads chat and found people seemed to be really excited about the upcoming release, citing how hard it is to find good bear stories. So the demand seems to be there.

I think this is a case of something readers have known about for some time, and only now the writers are getting on board to deliver the product. I know that I only wrote my first bear story (The Foreman, out now on Amazon and other vendors) this year as well. So I’m not sure if this is just another step forward in gay erotica and fiction, that we feel comfortable enough to loosen the belt and let the gut hang out, or what. It could just be a fad. But I don’t think so.

The more accepted that same-sex partnerships and LGBT fiction becomes, I think the more the sub-genres will get some attention and love. That means just as heterosexual erotica started embracing the bigger dress sizes, gay fiction is also embracing more of the meaty offerings, more “real” body types.

If you love bears, 2014 is turning out to be a great year.

Let’s hope it continues.

About the Author: J.T. Hall has a Bachelor degree in Creative Writing and a Masters in Education, and has been writing for many years. J.T. was a strong voice in fanfiction and moderated one of the largest slash rpg games online for over three years. J.T.’s work has appeared in Excite's erotic fiction anthologies. Among the themes you'll find are BDSM, Domination/submission, gay and lesbian fiction, paranormal erotica, and group orgies. There are few kinks J.T. won't touch!

Follow J.T.’s musings and progress on upcoming short stories and novels at the blog here: http://jthallwriting.wordpress.com or on Twitter @jthall7.

Now out: “The Foreman,” available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other vendors.

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Foreman-Hardcore-Gay-Short-Story-ebook/dp/B00MQDHMVY/

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-foreman-jt-hall/1120171704

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

No Fae is an Island Cover Reveal

So excited to be a part of Angel Martinez's Cover Reveal Today!

Author Bio:

While Angel Martinez is the erotic fiction pen name of a writer of several genres, she writes both kinds of gay romance – Science Fiction and Fantasy. Currently living part time in the hectic sprawl of northern Delaware, (and full time inside the author's head) Angel has one husband, one son, two cats, a changing variety of other furred and scaled companions, a love of all things beautiful and a terrible addiction to the consumption of both knowledge and chocolate.

Author Contact:

Website: Erotic Fiction for the Hungry Mind
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Angel.Martinez.author
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1010469.Angel_Martinez
Email: ravenesperanza@yahoo.com

Publisher: MLR Press

Cover Artist: Lex Valentine

Blurb(s):

Three years ago, Danu banished Diego for a time from the human world. Three years and three days doesn't seem that long to be away from home but living among the wild fae can change a man and the human world returns the favor by changing while he's gone. There's a vampire on Tearmann Island's security force. A curious selkie's followed him home. So much to do to keep the world safe...but Diego's no longer sure he has the right to interfere.

Theo Aguilar started his vampire life on the wrong side of the law. He's killed and knows he’s dangerous if he doesn't stay in control every moment. But the fae took him in and Prince Lugh has given him a position of trust. So when Diego and Finn are arrested on a diplomatic mission far from home, he knows his duty. He's striking out on his own to rescue them, a lone vigilante once again, this time for the good guys. The only glitch? The selkie, Limpet, can't seem to understand the alone part.

Categories: Contemporary, Fantasy, M/M Romance, Paranormal, Romance, Urban Fantasy

Excerpt:

“You don’t need to come with me.” Theo fought clenched teeth. The selkie was a friend of Mr. Sandoval’s and Finn’s, too—Finn who had been so kind to him after accidentally squashing him in dragon form. No need to be rude.

“Quite all right. I’ve nothing better to do.”

“You can’t come with me,” Theo said in the chilliest, sternest tone he could muster.

“Oh, of course I can. I see quite well at night.”

Theo squeezed his eyes shut against the headache. It shouldn’t have been there. He’d fed that morning and napped the rest of the day in lethargic, sated bliss. Fine. He’ll get bored and leave soon. “All right. But you have to be quiet.”

“Yes, yes, of course. In case something bad is here. A pack of nixes maybe. Oh, they’re bad. Or a kraken tries to swim close and ambush you, yes? You’re a real warrior, then? Have you seen many battles? Do you have scars? I have scars, but only because I was very young—”

“Limpet.” Theo stopped and took the selkie’s chin in his hand, holding his head still. “Whispering is not being quiet.”

“Right you are. Sorry. You have beautiful eyes.”

Theo dropped his hand and walked away, shaking his head. It was going to be long night.

Tour Dates: 9/2/14